All posts tagged QIA

Few bankers and analysts raised an eyebrow when Ahmad Al Sayed was appointed Tuesday as the new chief executive of the Qatar Investment Authority, the Arab Gulf emirate’s main sovereign wealth fund. Having spent five years at the helm of Qatar Holding, a QIA subsidiary that makes opportunistic investments in foreign companies on behalf of the Qatari government, Mr. Al Sayed is a trusted hand with plenty of experience managing state assets. It seems a natural choice.

“I doubt there will be a massive shift in strategy,” said one Doha-based banker who has dealt with Mr. Al Sayed. “It is still very sporadic: a trophy asset, a deal below the radar or a takeover that shocks. It is opportunistic. They still do pretty much whatever they like to do.” Read More »